The growing concerns for the environment and increasingly stringent standards for NO emission have presented a major challenge to control NO emissions from electric utility plants and automobiles. Catalytic decomposition of NO is the most attractive approach for the control of NO emission for its simplicity. Successful development of an effective catalyst for NO decomposition will greatly decrease the equipment and operation cost of NO control. Due to lack of understanding of the mechanism of NO decomposition, efforts on the search of an effective catalyst have been unsuccessful. Scientific development of an effective catalyst requires fundamental understanding of the nature of active site, the rate-limiting step, and an approach to prolong the life of the catalyst. Research is proposed to study the reactivity of adsorbates for the direct NO decomposition and to investigate the feasibility of two novel approaches for improving catalyst activity and resistance to sintering. The first approach is the use of silanation to stabilize metal crystallites and supports for Cu-ZSM-5 and promoted Pt catalysts; the second is utilization of oxygen spillover and desorption to enhance NO decomposition activity. An innovative infrared reactor system will be used to observe and determine the dynamic behavior and the reactivity of …

In the United States today, governments at all levels and the citizenry are paying increasing attention to the effects, both real and hypothetical, of industrial activity on the environment. Responsible modem industries, reflecting this heightened public and regulatory awareness, are either substituting benign materials for hazardous ones, or using hazardous materials only under carefully controlled conditions. In addition, present-day environmental consciousness dictates that we deal responsibly with legacy wastes. The decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) of facilities at which mercury was used or processed presents a variety of challenges. Elemental mercury is a liquid at room temperature and readily evaporates in air. In large mercury-laden buildings, droplets may evaporate from one area only to recondense in other cooler areas. The rate of evaporation is a function of humidity and temperature; consequently, different parts of a building may be sources or sinks of mercury at different times of the day or even the year. Additionally, although mercury oxidizes in air, the oxides decompose upon heating. Hence, oxides contained within pipes or equipment, may be decomposed when those pipes and equipment are cut with saws or torches. Furthermore, mercury seeps through the pores and cracks in concrete blocks and pads, and collects as …

This report describes the optical system which allows the delivery, in an efficient and homogeneous way, of the pump light from the diode arrays of the Mercury laser system described in the two previous reports. I will, first, describe the present pumping line ; the description of the Advanced Pumping Design (APD) being given in the second part of this report.

During the second quarter of the second year of the contract activity has focused on the task of implementing the exploration well data base. In addition the author has continued to work on the tasks of the maintenance of the WWW site with the heat flow and gradient data base, and development of a modeling capability for analysis of the geothermal system exploration data. He is implementing the data base template for geothermal system temperature-depth/gradient/heat flow data to be used in conjunction with the regional temperature-depth/gradient/heat flow data base that he had already developed. The implementation this quarter has focused on the state of Nevada as the most number of wells are there and few of the wells have been previously available in a data base. A map is enclosed that updates the state of Nevada from the preliminary map in the first quarterly report. They presently are entering data into the geothermal data base. They now have over 1,000 sites in Nevada with data from the sources that they have access to at this time. The breakdown based on the data now entered into the data base is shown in a table.

A Grapple Hoist Assembly is currently used on the Rotary Mode Core Sampling Trucks (RMCSTs) to actuate the sampler and retrieve the pintle rod during sampling operations. The hoist assembly includes a driven drum approximately two inches wide and six inches in diameter that rotates to pay out or reel in the 5/32-in. cable. The current Grapple Hoist Assembly, detailed on drawing H-2-690057, is prone to ''bird nesting'' the cable on the drum. ''Bird nesting'' is a condition in which the cable does not wind onto the drum in a uniformly layered manner, but winds in a random fashion where the cable essentially ''piles up'' inappropriately on the drum and, on some occasions, winds on the drum drive shaft. A system to help control this ''bird nesting'' problem has been designed as an addition to the existing components of the Grapple Hoist Assembly. The new design consists of a mechanism that is timed with, and driven by, the shaft that drives the drum. This mechanism traverses back and forth across the width of the drum to lay the cable on the drum in a uniformly layered manner. This test plan establishes the acceptance criteria, test procedure and test conditions. It …

The Seacoaster combines the high efficiencies of Surface Effect Ships (SES) with simple catamaran hull construction. It has blower pressurized air cushions that support some 80-90 percent of displacement and hence the high efficiencies. However, unlike the SES, there are no expensive and high maintenance flexible seals. Each catamaran sidehull has a simple recess molded or built into its underside. Powered blowers direct pressurized air into such recesses and thereby create lifting air cushions. There are no flexible seals of any kind and there is no air cushion between the sidehulls. Extensive towed model tests were conducted that showed the viability of the invention.

This Project Implementation Plan (PIP) shall be the controlling document for the Accelerated Site Technology Deployment (ASTD) supported project to procure and qualify a remote/robotic work platform for large hot cell deactivation in the 324 Building B-Cell. This plan will be integrated into the 324/327 Buildings Stabilization/Deactivation Project, Project Management Plan, (HNF-IP-1289, Rev. 1) and shall comply with the base requirements established in that document. This PIP establishes the baseline and defines the scope, schedule, budget, organizational responsibilities, reporting requirements, deliverables, and end points for the implementation of new technology into B-Cell. This shall include procurement, safety, quality assurance, training, documentation, record management, and facility modifications applicable to this project. Specifically this plan controls and executes the procurement and acceptance, qualification, and turnover of a remote/robotic work platform for 324 Building B-Cell. This includes the development of functional parameters, performance requirements, evaluation criteria, procurement specifications, acceptance and qualification test procedures, training requirements, and turnover responsibilities. The 324/237 Buildings Stabilization/Deactivation Project is currently in its second year of a nine-year project to complete deactivation and closure of the facility for long-term surveillance and maintenance. A major obstacles for the project is the inability to effectively perform deactivation tasks within high radioactively …

As the human population of Earth continues to expand and to demand an ever-higher quality-of-life, requirements for ever-greater knowledge--and then control--of the future of the state of the terrestrial biosphere grow apace. Convenience of living--and, indeed, reliability of life itself--become ever more highly ''tuned'' to the future physical condition of the biosphere being knowable and not markedly different than the present one, Two years ago, we reported at a quantitative albeit conceptual level on technical ways-and-means of forestalling large-scale changes in the present climate, employing practical means of modulating insolation and/or the Earth's mean albedo. Last year, we reported on early work aimed at developing means for creating detailed, high-fidelity, all-Earth weather forecasts of two weeks duration, exploiting recent and anticipated advances in extremely high-performance digital computing and in atmosphere-observing Earth satellites bearing high-technology instrumentation. This year, we report on recent progress in both of these areas of endeavor. Preventing the commencement of large-scale changes in the current climate presently appears to be a considerably more interesting prospect than initially realized, as modest insolation reductions are model-predicted to offset the anticipated impacts of ''global warming'' surprisingly precisely, in both space and time. Also, continued study has not revealed any fundamental …

We use the gradient of the energy-integrated angle resolved photoemission (ARPES) intensity in order to define precisely the Fermi surface (FS) in BSCCO superconductors. We show that, independent of the photon energy, the FS is a hole barrel centered at ({pi},{pi}), Then, the superconducting gap along the FS is precisely determined from ARPES measurements on over-doped and underdoped samples of Bi2212. As the doping decreases, the maximum gap increases, but the slope of the gap near the nodes decreases. Though consistent with d-wave symmetry, the gap with underdoping cannot be fit by the simple cos(k{sub x})-cos(k{sub y}) form. A comparison of our ARPES results with available penetration depth data indicates that the renormalization of the linear T suppression of the superfluid density at low temperatures due to quasiparticle excitations around the d-wave nodes is large and doping dependent.

The objective of the research was to assess the potential for vertical, directional and horizontal air drilling in the United States and to evaluate the current technology used in air drilling. To accomplish the task, the continental United States was divided into drilling regions and provinces. The map in Appendix A shows the divisions. Air drilling data were accumulated for as many provinces as possible. The data were used to define the potential problems associated with air drilling, to determine the limitations of air drilling and to analyze the relative economics of drilling with air versus drilling mud. While gathering the drilling data, operators, drilling contractors, air drilling contractors, and service companies were contacted. Their opinion as to the advantages and limitations of air drilling were discussed. Each was specifically asked if they thought air drilling could be expanded within the continental United States and where that expansion could take place. The well data were collected and placed in a data base. Over 165 records were collected. Once in the data base, the information was analyzed to determine the economics of air drilling and to determine the limiting factors associated with air drilling.

Examination of the ability to model aqueous systems of interest to the repository proposed by the Yucca Mountain Project has revealed an historical deficit in the ability to model complex waterÐmaterial systems that contain ordinary Portland cement (OPC) at elevated temperature (e.g., Bruton et al., 1994; Meike et al., 1994). One of the reasons is that cement chemistry typically concentrates on two issues of importance to the concrete industry: the hydration of cement powder, which contains reactive phases that do not persist in the cured concrete, and the causes of mechanical degradation at earth surface temperatures such as delayed ettringite formation and alkali silica reaction. Such modeling capability is not available in the open literature, even from applications that might have developed high temperature approaches, such as deep drilling for oil and geothermal resource recovery. The ability to simulate the interaction between concrete, as it evolves over time, and water has become more critical as repository designers begin to consider the incorporation of OPC materials in the emplacement drifts. The Yucca Mountain Project is unique among the high-level radioactive waste repository projects in the world in terms of the need to understand and predict processes in excess of 100°C (see, …

This report details the results of a research conducted in 1998 and 1999 and outlines a marketing deployment plan designed for businesses interested in marketing solar water heaters in the new home industry.

Tank 241-SY-101 (SY-101) has recently exhibited a steady waste surface level growth. A path forward to mitigate the SY-101 surface level growth issue has been developed. The project has been directed to install the necessary equipment to transfer 380-570m{sup 3} (100,000-150,000 gallons) of waste from SY-101 to SY-102 before the waste elevation reached the region of the tank where the transition from a double to a single shell tank occurs. The purpose of this document is to record the design attributes of the RAPID mitigation system which fulfill the requirements specified in DOE order 6430.1A as it relates to the 241-SY-101 RAPID Mitigation System.

The federally mandated phase-out of chlorofluorocarbon refrigerants requires screening tests for motor materials compatibility with alternative refrigerant/lubricant mixtures. In the current phase of the program, ARTI is supporting tests of promising candidate refrigeration/lubricant systems in key refrigeration component systems such as bearings and hermetic motor insulation systems to screen for more subtle detrimental effects and allow estimates of motor-compressor life. This report covers: mechanisms of failure of hermetic motor insulation, current methods for estimation of life of hermetic motors, and conceptual design of improved stator simulator device for testing of alternative refrigerant/lubricant mixtures.

The purpose of this workshop was to develop technical background facts necessary for planning continued research and development of Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS). EGS are geothermal reservoirs that require improvement of their permeability or fluid contents in order to achieve economic energy production. The initial focus of this R&D program is devising and testing means to extract additional economic energy from marginal volumes of hydrothermal reservoirs that are already producing commercial energy. By mid-1999, the evolution of the EGS R&D Program, begun in FY 1988 by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), reached the stage where considerable expertise had to be brought to bear on what technical goals should be pursued. The main purpose of this Workshop was to do that. The Workshop was sponsored by the Office of Geothermal Technologies of the Department of Energy. Its purpose and timing were endorsed by the EGS National Coordinating Committee, through which the EGS R&D Program receives guidance from members of the U.S. geothermal industry. Section 1.0 of this report documents the EGS R&D Program Review Session. There, managers and researchers described the goals and activities of the program. Recent experience with injection at The Geysers and analysis of downhole conditions at …

Ball- and roller-bearings of the 21st Century are expected to perform better and last longer while operating under more stringent conditions than before. To meet these great expectations, researchers have been constantly exploring new bearing designs or refining existing ones, optimizing microstructure and chemistry of bearing materials, and alternatively, they have been considering the use of thin hard coatings for improved bearing performance and durability. Already, some laboratory tests have demonstrated that hard nitride, carbide (such as TiN, TiC, etc.) and diamondlike carbon (DLC) coatings can be very effective in prolonging the fatigue lives of bearing steels. This paper provides an overview of the recent developments in hard coatings for bearing applications. Previous studies have demonstrated that thin, hard coatings can effectively prolong the fatigue lives of bearing steel substrates. In particular, thinner hard coatings (i.e., 0.2 - 1 {micro}m thick) provide exceptional improvements in the fatigue lives of bearing steel substrates. In contrast, thicker hard coatings suffer micro fracture and delamination when tested under high contact stresses, hence are ineffective and may even have a negative effect on bearing life. Overall, it was concluded that thin hard coatings may offer new possibilities for bearing industry in meeting the performance …

This report reviews the history of judicial rulings on the war power, starting with what the framers intended for "defensive actions" by the President and moving forward to summarize the principal Supreme Court and lower court decisions.

This report discusses employer trip reduction (ETR) programs, which would require large employers to implement certain transportation control measures as part of a national effort to combat air pollution, largely as a direct result of the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990.

The acceptance test report for the TMACS Acromag 1/0 Processor interface running under Windows NT.

The acceptance test for the Westronics driver. This driver connects the Westronics Smart Multiplexer with the TMACS monitoring system.

The Bechtel National, Inc. Detailed Design Instructions for Structural Design (DDI-02) requires that concrete components of the GWSB not exceed 150{degrees}F for structural elements and 200{degrees}F locally over a 24 hour period. In addition, the Waste Acceptance Product Specifications (WAPS) sets the maximum post cooldown temperature of the glass waste-form at 400{degrees}C. Various scenarios can be postulated which result in elevated glass and concrete temperatures in the GWSB. Therefore, it is important to determine the concrete and glass temperatures during both normal and off-normal conditions. This document details specific tasks required to develop a technically defensible and verifiable methodology for determining maximum temperatures for the waste-forms and the GWSB concrete structures. All models used in this analysis will satisfy Quality Assurance requirements and be defensible to review and oversight committees.

When x-rays from a synchrotron source are absorbed in a liquid, the x-ray energy (E{sub x}) is converted by the photoelectric effect into the kinetic energy of the electrons released. For hydrocarbons, absorption by the K-electrons of carbon dominates. Thus the energy of the photoelectron (E{sub pe}) is E{sub x}-E{sub b}, where E{sub b} is the K-shell binding energy of carbon. Additional electrons with energy equal to E{sub b} is released in the Auger process that fills the hole in the K-shell. These energetic electrons will produce many ionizations, excitations and products. The consequences of the high density of ionizations and excitations along the track of the photoelectron and special effects near the K-edge are examined here.

Aerogel materials posses such a wide variety of exceptional properties that a striking number of applications have developed for them. Many of the commercial applications of aerogels such as catalysts, thermal insulation, windows, and particle detectors are still under development and new application as have been publicized since the ISA4 Conference in 1994: e.g.; supercapacitors, insulation for heat storage in automobiles, electrodes for capacitive deionization, etc. More applications are evolving as the scientific and engineering community becomes familiar with the unusual and exceptional physical properties of aerogels, there are also scientific and technical application, as well. This paper discusses a variety of applications under development at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory for which several types of aerogels are formed in custom sizes and shapes. Particular discussions will focus on the uses of aerogels for physics experiments which rely on the exceptional, sometimes unique, properties of aerogels.

Magnetic loop type input couplers are used for coupling rf power from waveguides to the storage ring cavities: In a high rf power and high beam current accelerating cavity, the change in beam loading results in high reflected power due to input rf mismatch. The coupler can be matched for a specific loading condition, but cannot be matched in other conditions. The input mismatch results in poor rf power efficiency and overheating of the ceramic window in the coupler. Therefore, coupling through the coupling loop must be adjustable for maximum operating power efficiency and coupler reliability. The adjustment of coupling can be made by changing the magnetic flux linkage through the loop area. This can be done either mechanically by moving the coupling loop position or electronically by using impedance matching to change the properties of low loss material such as ferrite. In the existing coupler design, to change the coupling the coupler loop is turned physically for matching. The cavity vacuum must be broken and pumped down again; this can cause long system down time.